It’s a tough time to be a short seller in today’s stock market.
Stocks only go up, right?
At least that’s what the market is telling us…
The S&P 500 has more than tripled since the start of the bull market.
And in the last year, the VIX index – which measures stock market volatility – has dropped to a 23-year low.
In fact, shorting volatility has quietly become one of the market’s hottest trades.
Since February 2016, XIV – the most popular short VIX exchange-traded fund – has gained 675%.
VXX – the world’s largest long VIX fund – has tumbled more than 90% over the same period.
But here’s the thing…
The party may be coming to a swift end.
Brokers have stopped blindly taking investors’ money and forced them to post enormous margins to short the VIX.
That’s a bad sign for VIX short sellers.
If you hold any of these ETFs in your portfolio, the time to worry is now.